So, I am almost finished with this book, which I picked up at the library partially for it's cool cover image, and partially for its intriguing title. I am always interested in powerful women, and this book seemed to promise an encouraging tale of women in power, doing great things, rescuing an empire.
Of course, history is never as neat and tidy as we'd like to imagine, and this book offered less "women-as-heroes" moments than I'd expected. Also, it really highlights the deeply engrained patriarchal tendencies of men, even in a society established to be so egalitarian as Genghis Khan's empire seemed to be. (Genghis Khan: Mongolia's first feminist? Pretty cool.)
The overarching story is less about one generation of women (as the title might imply) and more about important women rising to power, holding power, staging revolutions and just being general bad-asses over the course of several generations. That kind of consistency has a lasting effect, and this book is ultimately encouraging in a wholly un-glamorous, un-hollywood, but totally real way.
And I have to say that so far, I'm undecided in my opinion. The moment Jake saw the cover in the stack I'd brought home from the library, he sort of snorted and said, "oh, a book for girls."
That is pretty much what it is, in a nutshell.
I'd be pre-disposed to turn my nose up at it, if I hadn't been sucked in by the premise that the Pink Carnation is actually a famous English spy in the 18th century, along the lines of one of my favorite English spies of all time...The Scarlet Pimpernel.
It is, to this day, one of my very favorite books. Maybe because it is written from Marguerite's perspective, or maybe I just have a thing for swashbucklers...either way, it's the association that grabbed me. And now, the plot (though sprinkled with some groan-worthy "romantic" scenes that are trying just a bit too hard to sound Pride-and-Prejudice-esque) has sucked me in and I'll have to see what happens. Likely, it'll be a bit of a let down, but so far, I've decided I'm gonna roll with it.
What about you? Have you ever picked up, or stuck with a book simply because it referenced or reminded you of another book you really liked? Or is it just me??
My friend, Jenni, is going on vacation next weekend. We were discussing what books she'd take to read on the trains she'll be riding around Spain. She said, "I will definitely bring my pocket Pride and Prejudice, because it's always good to read." I emphatically nodded my approval.
So, as a Jane Austen fan, and as a teacher, I was doubly excited to read this book review in the New York Times. It led me to this book:
Apparently, William Deresiewicz has taken the novels of Ms. Austen and learned all sorts of cool life lessons from them, and written it all down in A Jane Austen Education. I love it.
Even more intriguing is his connection between Austen's literary style and teaching practice. In his article for The Chronicle, Deresiewicz describes how reading Northanger Abbey, and specifically interactions between Catherine Morland and Henry Tilney,revealed "lessons to explore for a lifetime, but the first place I applied them was the classroom.":
"Instead of training Catherine to follow the conventions of life in her society, Henry was trying to wake her up to them by showing her how absurd they were. But he didn't do it by being didactic; he did it by provoking her, taking her by surprise, making her laugh, throwing her off balance, forcing her to figure out what was going on and what it meant—getting her to think, not telling her how."
I see in Deresiewicz's quote the glimmer of what I consider the true teacher's heart. This is a book that I need to read, for my love of Austen, certainly. But also for my love of teaching.
What about you? What author has taught you your most significant life-lessons?
For this Book Talk Tuesday, let's talk about living in balance.
So, I'm on Day 3 of my 10-Day Reboot. Made an awesome salad for dinner last night, and learned a thing or too about basic cooking moves in the process (but more on that later).
Every morning for the past three days, I've been practicing these flow workouts, and so far, so good.
But, I'll give you a hint about which flow is hardest for me: it's the one with the least amount of hands/feet on the floor. As much as I love yoga (and I do! It's a totally non-competative workout with a nap at the end--what's not to love?), I suck at balance poses. I've been having an awful time of it during my magical days of detox, and so I thought what any college instructor in writing and research would think, "I wonder if there is a book I can read to help with this?"
And while I didn't find a book about yoga poses per se, I did find and interesting list of books and articles to help with living a balanced life in general.
ProfHacker suggests creating a Whole-Life Grid to maintain a balanced professional academic life:
And then, there's this funny article about balancing swear words with professional words.
This is the book I'm reading with the hubs. The title sounds super self-helpy, I know. But so far, we've found it to be a pretty practical book about spiritual balance.
There's always this aptly named novel which was recently added to Oprah's famous list, and which looks pretty darn luscious, if you ask me.
If all else fails, I will turn to Kung Fu Panda: The Art of Balance. Apparently, in this illustrated print episode of the tale, Po is trying to balance his job at his dad's noodle shop and his new life as a Dragon Warrior. I totally relate. I'm sure that I have much to learn from this animated, endangered dude. (p.s. I haven't seen either of the movies yet, but sort of want to--to indulge my inner 12-yr-old, of course--anyone seen 'em? What did you think?)
Today, I'd like to talk about a particular kind of book that I've been falling harder for lately: audiobooks.
Yesterday, we started listening to March, the Geraldine Brooks novel that won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. I got the audiobook from our library, and we are about two chapters in.
Already, I can see why the book is so lauded. The prose is dense and luscious, yet unflinching in it's handling of unsettling content like war, physical pain, racism and slavery. Plus, the narrator of our copy has the best, gravely voice!
I've had conversations with some people who say things like, "bah! Audiobooks are not real books..."and I'm never sure how to respond. I think they're just fine. In fact, I've had some fantastic audiobook experiences! It is how I gleaned tips from Stephen King's On Writing, and when we went to the icy coast of Lake Michigan last Christmas, it is how we finished up the Harry Potter series. In both cases, I had such fun reading, er, listening to those stories. Just because I'm not "looking" at the words doesn't mean I'm not ingesting them, absorbing their meaning and being potentially moved by them. Right?
Then, I heard a great segment on Talk of the Nation last Thursday about this very thing. What do you think? Are audiobooks a boon to reading enthusiasts or destroying the fabric of reading culture? Somewhere in between? Let's talk.
On my dream (read: would-love-to-but-already-have-too-many-other-commitments-and-so-don't-have-enough-time-for-these-additions-to-the-list) summer reading list, there are the following books:
The G.K. Chesterton Biography. I mean, who wouldn't want to know more about the man who gave us such witty literary gems as:
"Fairy tales are more than true; not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten."
"The word "good" has many meanings. For example, if a man were to shoot his grandmother at a range of five hundred yards, I should call him a good shot, but not necessarily a good man."
I want to read pretty much every book on Madame Fromage's Cheese-Reading List. She sure knows the way to my cheese-and-book-loving heart!
This book has been mentioned on a couple of other blogs, but it wasn't until I read Jamie's review on Charmingly Ordinary, that I decided I for sure wanted to read it.
Looking back over today's list, I realize that there isn't any fiction (except for the Bulgakov on Mme. Fromage's list). What do you think--fiction: for or against? (or ambivilant?) I know what our friend Chesterton would say:
"Literature is a luxury; fiction is a necessity."
— G.K. Chesterton
Hey friends! Sorry that I'm a little late on this---but it finally is time again for Book Talk Tuesday.
I have so much that I want to talk about today, but I'll try to keep it brief ;)
First off, I have to confess something: I'm re-reading. I do this every now-and-then. My dad just shakes his head at me--he'd rather spend his precious book-reading-time covering new territory. But then, he does re-watch his favorite films...so I may have him there.
I am re-reading one of my favorite books on the writing process:
Heather Sellers is just a gem of a writer--the kind of lady I want to take me out for a cup of tea and tell me all of her funny and heartwrenching and warmly human stories. This book is a way to pretend; it has frank advice, humor and honesty about the writing process that is really (in my opinion) hard to find in these types of books. Plus, it has really, really fun writing exercises.
I'm also re-starting this book of short stories, edited by Alison Swan. I've skipped around in it before, circling around the poignant story "Lake Huron's Tide" by my friend, Rachael Perry. This time, I'm starting at the beginning, and reading through. I already love it. "HOMES: Living with Lake Michigan," by Judith Minty, sucked me right in with its grade-school reference and at turns wistful, harrowing and wise tale.
Today, though, a couple of new books caught my eye. There's this one:
The newest from Geraldine Brooks is set in Puritan New England and told from the point of view of a young female narrator, built around a "slender factual scaffold"--much like People of the Book. It was while reading the New York Times review that I made the connection: Brooks also wrote Year of Wonders, about the plague that my sister-in-law was recommending to me at Christmas. Hmmm, Geraldine Brooks, I am intrigued. And I can't wait to read more...
Today I'd like to talk books, poetry and all things literacy. What do you say? I'm thinking of making Tuesday "Book Talk Tuesday." It has a nice ring, yes? The only thing is, I might be too flighty to make it *every* Tuesday...but I'm gonna try. We can get together on a Tuesday and talk books--what we're reading, interested in reading, recommending others to read.
Also, here is an article by Christopher Hitchens, beautifully written and sharply bittersweet, reflecting on potentially losing his speaking voice and how that relates to his writing voice. Hitchens quotes a few lines from one of my favorite poems, "The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock," by T.S. Eliot. While Hitchens and I do not share the same views about faith practice, he had me at Eliot. Well, he had me at himself, actually. Though we do not agree on theology, I have to appreciate his intellect--sharp, sharp, sharp! I find his version of the Ten Commandments to be so thought provoking...
...as well as his debates with Douglas Wilson over the question, "Is Christianity Good for the World?" Collision, the film that documents their debate tour, is equally fascinating, no matter what "side" you come down on, or how you answer the question.
He was talking about his new book so cleverly (I've enjoyed his humor since his Flight of the Conchords days!) that when I got to the bookstore, I thumbed through it--and chuckled to myself for several minutes. I also saw that he will be performing a reading at this Barnes and Noble this Sunday. Do I want to go?
Oh yeah.
But, it's probably lucky that I stumbled upon this hilarious blog post first. I didn't know who Emily St. John Mandel was before reading her tips on what *not* to ask at a reading...but she seems like the kind of chick who'd be awesome to be friends with. Doesn't she?
Hope your day is going just great. I myself am using this day to "reboot" a bit. Our weekend was fantastic, and very, very busy. We helped friends move and went on a date, taught a class and babysat, watched a Dr. Who mini-marathon with my best friend and partied with my parents and sister and bro-in-law.
Whew.
On our date, Jake and I went out for a delicious Thai dinner and then saw this movie:
Can I just say...? It was awesome.
There was a good mix of kick-butt action and emotive acting, as well a gorgeous photography. Perfect date-night movie: kept the hubs engaged and wasn't *too* gorey for me...though there were a couple of moments when I had to hide my face against Jake's shoulder!
Cate Blanchett was luminous and scary-crazy.
Eric Bana was fierce. (not in the fashion sense, though!) All-in-all, it made for a great date night--I highly recommend.
Also, here are a couple of interesting bits I knocked into today:
